1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for obtaining configuration information from a computer system. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for securely registering hardware and/or software components in a computer system.
2. Related Art
As the number of computer systems used by an organization increases, it becomes progressively harder to perform system maintenance operations for these computer systems. One of the tasks involved in maintaining a computer system is to obtain configuration information for the computer system. For example, this configuration information can include information about software and hardware components installed in the computer system. Moreover, this configuration information can be used to perform maintenance tasks such as: offering initialization information to the computer system; registering any software, firmware, and hardware component with the computer system; offering software and firmware patches; or offering replacements for outdated hardware components.
To obtain this configuration information, a system administrator typically uses a computer system belonging to the administrator to remotely request configuration information for one or more target computer systems. During this process, it is desirable to require minimal interaction with a system administrator or the target systems. However, at the same time there is a need to prevent unauthorized users or systems from viewing the configuration information.
Hence, what is needed is a method and an apparatus for securely registering hardware and software components in a computer system.